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- THE MAGAZINE
2013 marks the 45th year anniversary of Chemspec, a brand established in Baltimore, MD in 1968 by Bob Hughes and Dan Savanuk.
Legend Brands has announced that it will market the Chemspec line of floor care and fabric cleaning chemicals as part of its products group.
Legend Brands has announced a strategic alliance to market the Chemspec line of chemicals as part of its products group, according to a press release.
See all the sights from Clearwater Beach for the inaugural Experience Conference and Exhibition, held from April 17-20, 2013.


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Hate ads? Download Brave web browser. Fast, secure, built in ad-blocking.
Samsung Black Friday deals are already live, and you can start to choose which devices you want to buy before they run out
Samsung's new Galaxy Tab S4 has a few innovative tricks up its sleeve! Take a look at our Hands-on for a quick peek at what this new tablet will offer.
Priced at $150 on-contract, and $250 outright, the "new" Samsung Galaxy Tab E on Verizon stands out with pre-loaded Android 7.1... and not much else.
Launched in select European markets several months ago, the upper mid-range Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 is now finally available stateside as well.
Samsung might be just about ready to give up on conventional Galaxy Tabs, but the 7-inch Galaxy J Max will try to keep phone/tablet hybrids alive.
Somewhat surprisingly and relatively timely, Verizon and Samsung join hands to send over-the-air Android Marshmallow to the Big Red-locked Galaxy Tab E 8.0.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab Iris is likely paving the way for an eye-scanning Galaxy Note 6, testing the iris-recognizing waters in the enterprise Indian scene.
The cost-conscious 9.6-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab E has officially joined Verizon's LTE-capable roster with Lollipop software treats in tow.
Should Samsung make a Galaxy Tab Edge, a tablet with curved edges? If so, would you buy it?
Does Samsung have a new giant of a tablet incoming? See what we've learned about a possible 13.3-inch Samsung tablet.
Let’s face it, tablets aren’t perfect. We’ve had numerous editorials talking about it, and we don’t think twice about pointing these imperfections out in our reviews. Surely in life nothing is perfect, but there are surely those companies that try harder, and those that don’t. There are companies that’ll charge you the same amount of money for lesser quality products than others, and there are those that would rather lose a premium in oder to sell you what you paid for.
Now that said, tablets aren’t new. We’ve used them for over a decade, and it’s interesting to note that there [...]
The Galaxy Tab 3 8.0 is still undergoing testing in our review chamber, but is anyone still in the market for the tablet after the new Nexus 7 release?
The Galaxy Note 8.0 might be a crucial building block in Samsung's effort to dominate the Android tablet space. Read on to see why we think it's worth your time.
The fruit-company has managed to score a stay in the case, at least until October, when Apple can be heard in front of the court.
Source: Baggetta_Ware TeacherTech
It’s one thing to read a story and quite another to interact with it. Baggetta_Ware has created a series of electronic books that help students of literature and other serious readers do the later. Each of these books contain not only the full text of the book but also puzzles, study guides, and questions. Baggetta_Ware has already released several of these “interactive books” for desktop systems but they’ve recently began a parallel line for Pocket PCs. Each interactive book has a free downloadable demo version [...]

domain: news


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Written by: Ayman Fazeli
Date: Tuesday 13th October, 2015
Copy and paste the code below into your site.
Ayman is a journalist with over ten years' experience in the business and financial sectors. He heads up our sizeable content team and his specialties include issues around company insolvency and restructuring. He has written for The Guardian, The Daily Mail and Mashable to name just a few publications.
15th February 2017 The growth of what has become known as the gig economy is costing HMRC in the region of £75 million in lost tax revenues every week, it has been claimed.
14th February 2017 Growth in the UK economy will slow down considerably over the course of this year and next, according to the European Commission.
14th February 2017 The Co-operative Bank has been put up for sale in its entirety four years after it came perilously close to collapse before being acquired by US hedge funds.
9th February 2017 Notably strong consumer spending helped to keep the UK economy on track in recent months despite the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the country’s exit from the European Union.
6th February 2017 A majority of big business leaders around the UK feel that the Brexit vote last June and the still unfolding ramifications have had a negative impact on their operations.
Every day we help companies just like yours turn things around against seemingly impossible odds, regardless of your situation we can help. Find your nearest office today.


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Why Brazilians love spaghetti rings: Waitrose orders to customers overseas are up 20%
Waitrose is taking more orders from abroad including demands for spaghetti rings from Brazil
Brazilians love Waitrose's spaghetti rings, the French are big fans of the posh supermarket's baked beans and Australians go crazy for piccalilli.
Waitrose revealed orders for its food and drink to customers overseas are up by 20 per cent compared to 2016, through its partnership with online store British Corner Shop.
Exports of its baked beans to France are booming, with British Corner Shop exporting 66 per cent more of the supermarket's baked beans compared to last year.
In Germany, shoppers are shunning the country's bangers and instead plumping for Waitrose's free range pork sausages and its chipolatas with honey and rosemary wrapped in bacon.
Italy buys the most ginger nut biscuits and Canadians love guzzling Waitrose's bourbon creams.
The furthest orders come from Australia where the top seller is Waitrose's mustard piccalilli.
It has also exported gin and mince pies to the Cayman Islands and ice cream and profiteroles to Barbados.
Mark Callaghan, managing director of British Corner Shop, said: 'Brits [are] increasingly wanting a taste of home and new customers around the world [are] keen to try foods which aren't readily available.'
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Kuwait’s exports to the 27-member European Union totaled 3.16 billion euro (USD 3.3 billion) in the first seven months (Jan-July) of 2023, according to the EU statistical office.
By contrast, Kuwait’s exports to the EU in the 12 months of 2022 totaled 3.5 billion euro (USD 3.6 billion).
Meanwhile, Kuwait’s imports from the EU for the 12 months of 2022 were worth 5.5 billion euro, (USD 5.8 billion) and for the first seven months of 2023 worth 3.44 billion euro (USD 3.6 billion).
These figures were received by KUNA from Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office said in statement released today.
Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials formed the bulk of Kuwait's exports to the EU followed by chemicals and related products.
The bulk of Kuwait’s imports from the EU were miscellaneous manufactured articles, followed by chemicals and related products.
All KUNA right are reserved © 2022. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).


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Amazon Prime memberships are getting more expensive — for
those customers who want the flexibility to pay for the speedy shipping
and media streaming program on a monthly basis.
The company is announcing on Friday that the Amazon Prime
monthly fee is increasing from $10.99 to $12.99 in the U.S., an
increase of 18 percent. The new price works out to nearly $156 a year.. . . more


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“It’s a very innovative and unique business model – one that presents a great option for business travelers especially us at FedEx because we have another very large hub like this one in Indianapolis,” said Richard Smith, vice president of global trade services.
OneJet takes off in Memphis – Memphis Business Journal
Monday the new business-minded air carrier OneJet launched its nonstop service from Memphis to Indianapolis
Memphis Business Journal’s Facebook Wall via http://www.facebook.com/memphisbusinessjournal/posts/10153419184201880
https://memphissmbmedia.wordpress.com/2015/06/23/its-a-very-innovative-and-unique-business-model-one-that-presents-a-great-op/ from Memphis SMB Media


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Earlier this week, Apple officially announced the discontinuation of the iPod Touch. This simply means the end of an era and the company’s iconic iPod series that has been around for 20 years now.
The Cupertino based giant stated that the reason for discontinuing the product was due to the gadget becoming obsolete and out of date. Its features are now offered by other Apple products like the iPhone and the iPad. In other words, it has been more or less replaced in the current market. For those unaware, the recently discontinued iPod Touch was the last entry within the iPod family and was unveiled back in May 2019, which is around 3 years ago.
But now, the brand’s marketing chief Greg Joswiak said that “Music has always been part of our core at Apple, and bringing it to hundreds of millions of users in the way iPod did impacted more than just the music industry — it also redefined how music is discovered, listened to, and shared. Today, the spirit of iPod lives on. We’ve integrated an incredible music experience across all of our products, from the iPhone to the Apple Watch to HomePod mini, and across Mac, iPad, and Apple TV. And Apple Music delivers industry leading sound quality with support for spatial audio — there’s no better way to enjoy, discover, and experience music.”
The iPod was first introduced back in October 2001, which is almost 21 years ago. Since then, the company had launched various iterations of the iPod, including the iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano, and the iPod Touch.
However, over the course of the years, all of these have been phased out. As of right now, the iPod Touch will still be available for purchase starting from 199 US Dollars from the brand’s website and retail stores, but only till stocks last.


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While the temperatures and overall
snowfall totals aren’t record breaking, many local businesses and snow sport
enthusiasts are struggling this winter. The fluctuating temperatures and
lack of snow are affecting everything from winter sports and local businesses to
birds and plants.
AARP Vermont says it will use its political
muscle to work for an expansion of the state’s Catamount Health program. The group, which represents older Americans, wants Vermont’s
small businesses to be able to enroll in Catamount.


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On Wednesday 11 May 2022, IIT, NCSR Demokritos co-organised a Career Day with the Dept. of Informatics & Telecommunications of the University of Peloponnese. The Institute of Informatics & Telecommunications, also participated online, with a presentation of NCSR Demokritos and all available work positions.
Watch the video:
The Career Day event took place in hybrid mode, online and physically on the premises of the University of the Peloponnese in Tripoli, so that participants have the opportunity to meet in person with their potential future employers.
Companies and research centres from the domain of informatics and telecommunications participated, offering available positions addressed to students and graduates. The Career Day event included speeches and presentations by companies and research centres, meetings and interviews between company representatives, students and graduates, while the CVs of interested attendees have been collected.


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HP aims to secure its PC portfolio with Sure Sense malware blocker
April 16, 2019 / Natalie Gagliordi
HP on Tuesday announced a bevy of PC updates and new features, as well as the formal release of HP Sure Sense, the company's new software that uses AI to prevent and block malware in near-real-time, including ransomware and previously unknown malware. HP says Sure Sense is different from other market offerings because it uses deep learning to understand what malware looks like and shuts down threats in seconds. The deep learning engine boils down terabytes of data into a lightweight agent that's installed directly on notebooks to scan for malware with minimal impact on PC resources. HP said Sure Sense is 99 percent effective for catching malware, including malware that was created just yesterday, and requires minimal updates. It also has behavioral detection in the system, meaning that it looks for ransomware behavior and blocks it if it sees something happening with rapid encryption of files. The platform also works offline, according to HP.


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February 18, 2014
Everyone says Natural Products Expo East and West are awesome opportunities for startup CPG companies to meet potential new buyers. That’s totally true. But there’s another, equally important segment of people that these trade shows score you face time with. Who’s that, you ask. Alek Ramoska, vice president of sales at Hope Foods, knows. Tune in.
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The new 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class is getting ready for its debut later this year. Broadly speaking, it is already clear that in terms of appearance it is mainly a solid evolution of the current one, but now an extra special test car has been spied for the first time.
For more than a year, camouflaged 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class prototypes have regularly been spied. Even as Mercedes-Maybach, the top limousine has already appeared in front of the camera a few times.
It is now clear that the 2021 Mercedes S-Class mainly gets a sharper nose, with slimmer headlights. At the rear, the S-Class looks a bit more streamlined than the current model, but the biggest external changes are the hidden door handles. However, if you study the car in more detail in these new photos, you will see that there is more going on. This is the S-Class Guard, the armored version of the 2021 S-Class, is destined for presidents of this world.
The Guard initially betrays its identity by its length that it is not similar to that of the standard S-Class, but there is more to it. Looking at the windows, the thick black border around them stands out. The Guard has glass of about ten centimeters thick, which no bullet should be able to pass through. Furthermore, the armor of the car is not so easy to see, but undoubtedly the modified suspension system has to work hard to keep the hundreds of extra kilos neatly above the wheels.
The S-Guard is built in Sindelfingen by a specialized team of 150 people, who can finish several hundred copies per year. In addition to the S-Class, special Guard versions of the GLS and G-Class are also made here.


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ThreatMetrix Inc., provider of integrated cybercrime prevention plans, has raised $20 million in Series E financing that it will use to expand.
Adams Street Partners led the round, along with existing backers that include August Capital, Tenaya Capital, U.S. Venture Partners and CM Capital. Adams Street Partner Dave Welsh will join ThreatMetrix’s board of directors as part of the deal.
“Today’s cybercriminals are more sophisticated than ever before and include talented, well-funded, international crime rings and nation states. This financing will enable us to expand the depth and breadth of The Network, grow our customer base and continuously build new capabilities into the TrustDefender Cybercrime Protection Platform to protect against rapidly evolving cyber threats,” CEO Reed Taussig said in a release.
The San Jose-based company — which operates in the financial services, government, social networks and e-commerce markets — will also use the capital to expand into the enterprise security, healthcare, gaming and insurance industries. It plans to add staff in Europe and Asia in its sales, marketing and services units.
ThreatMetrix has raised a total of $56.4 million. The firm most recently collected $18 million in March 2012.
The nearly 9-year-old company claims to have a base of more than 160 million active user accounts across 2,500 customers.
Click here to subscribe to TechFlash Silicon Valley, the free daily email newsletter about founders and funders in the region.


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Uber has customers all around the world all around the clock. Uber has been many people’s savior in disguise, whether it be an exit from an awkward situation or an end to a fun night. The company has grown exponentially, offering basic options such as UberX, options for those looking to save some money such as UberPool or those who want a luxury option such as UberBlack.
Despite their rise in customers, a 28 percent increase to 1.9 billion users from 2018, and increase in revenue, an increase of 27 percent to more than 3 billion dollars, Uber’s recent financial report reported a loss of 1.1 billion dollars. This loss is more than the 887 million dollars Uber lost a year earlier.
Uber still has been working on many expansion programs and using discounted programs to help them do so. Uber plans on cutting down their discounts and coupons that they used to originally promote the company. Furthermore, Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber’s chief executive, had to displace 1000 employees and pull their UberEats app from South Korea. Uber also has run into multiple court issues, such as the one we discussed in class earlier about Uber having to buy insurance for their drivers and others such as California possibly forcing Uber to make their free-lancers “employees” which would mean a lot of money that goes into minimum wage and employee benefits.
Hopefully, by cutting down on these programs and such, Uber will reach their goal of finally making a profit by the final quarter of 2020.
This issue relates to businesses and their work with stakeholders. Since Uber has to listen to their stakeholders (government and public), they comply with laws and roll out with new programs and discounts. They, at the same time, are disappointing their shareholders because of their inability to make money. This also relates to globalization because Uber has rolled out to many countries, with different options in different areas such as the UberCopter in Dubai.
Original Story “Uber Posts Faster Growth, but Loses $1.1 Billion.” Conger, Kate. The New York Times. The New York Times, February 6, 2020.


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A pricy EthereumNFTfrom one of Web3’s preeminent PFP collections has been permanently removed from circulation and symbolically tied to anOrdinals inscription, as a group of Bitcoiners celebrate the costly, eye-catching endeavor.
CryptoPunk #8611sold for around 55 Ethereum or $95,000 on Saturday, according toEtherescan. And hours later, the NFT was burned in a way that points toinscription 12,456,749, an NFT-like asset on Bitcoin that bears the same image as its predecessor.
The decision to effectively destroy CryptoPunk #8611 was a community-led effort conducted by Wolf Capital DeveloperNathan Steinon Twitter and holders ofBitcoin Bandits, a Western-themed collection of Ordinals inscriptions, a spokesperson for the project toldDecrypt.
“The community rallied behind the idea like crazy,” the Bitcoin Bandits spokesperson said, adding that around 150 people contributed to the cause.
When a digital asset is burned, it’s locked up for eternity in a digital wallet that nobody controls, and CryptoPunk #8611 has been put to rest in a well-known burnaddressthat also contains $21 million worth of Ethereum.
“What a wild night,” an account named Minh on Twitter toldDecrypt, who also posted a video documenting the purchase and burning of CryptoPunk #8611. He described the move as “chaotic, yet beautiful.”
Ordinals, a buzzy Bitcoin protocol that launched earlier this year, is used to create NFT-like assets on Bitcoin by “inscribing” data to individual satoshi, the smallest denomination of currency a Bitcoin can be broken down into. That data can include pictures, videos, or even plain text, which people have used to createBRC-20 tokens.
While NFTs could be considered a nascent industry or an emerging frontier for digital art, Ordinals inscriptions are much more new, leading to a wave of hype,bugs, andscamssurrounding crypto’s oldest coin.
As the community surrounding Ordinals continues to take shape, siphoning off pricy NFTs from the Ethereum space and pointing them in the direction of other assets on Bitcoin is becoming a more common move, referred to as teleburning.
So, if Saturday’s CryptoPunk burn sounds somewhat familiar, that’s because it’s not the first time a pricy NFT has been burned by someone looking to symbolically shift an asset’s underlying chain from Ethereum to Bitcoin.
In February, an NFT from the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection worth around $169,000 at the time wasburnedby Jason Williams, who toldDecryptnot long after that, essentially, “throwing a Lamborghini into a trash compactor” is kind of fun.
Notably, Yuga Labs, creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, toldDecryptthat the Ordinals inscription tied to Williams’ BAYC NFT represents an illegitimate ape, explaining only tokens that come from the project's original smart contract are considered valid, granting holders commercial rightsand access to events.
However, unlike Williams’ maneuver, CryptoPunk #8611 wasn’t burned purely for entertainment, according to Stein.
The end goal is to create a series of Ordinals inscriptions that correspond to a slice of ownership in CryptoPunk #8611—even though the underlying asset itself can no longer be owned by anyone on its original chain.
That collection of inscriptions will be created after the one that currently points to CryptoPunk #8611 is ceremonially sent to a digital wallet that belongs to Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, in what is effectively a one-way trip, Stein said in a tweet.
Members of the Bitcoin Bandits community who pooled funds together to purchase CryptoPunk #8611 have also been entered into a contest related to aseparateinscriptions project—but that’s beside the point, the spokesperson said.
“Bandits did it more to show the way,” the spokesperson said. “The Bandits Community thinks that CryptoPunks deserve better than ETH.”


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We want to know if rate trumps familiarity for our readers - let us know
Savers are currently faced with a dilemma. Interest rates on savings deals are incredibly low, but many of the best products are from little-known brands rather than high-street names.
This has happened because banks have become increasingly cautious about their profits due to economic pressures and Bank of England cuts to base rate.
Not wanting to be flooded with savers and end up owing more money than they can afford, banks have been steadily cutting rates.
Few large banks now feature in the best buy tables, but smaller banks have seized the opportunity to grab some of their market share with attractive deals.
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme guarantees you will get up to £85,000 back if a savings provider goes bust.
But would you still avoid entrusting your hard-earned money to an unknown bank paying a top rate and instead pick a household name bank that paid less?
Vote in our poll so Moneywise can judge savers' mood on this crucial topic.
Would you take out a top savings deal if it came from a bank you’d never heard of?— Moneywise (@Moneywiseonline) June 19, 2020


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Evidence is piling up that electric vehicles are driven much less than gas-powered models, which could sap the tech’s power against climate change if the trend continues.
Driving the news: A new peer-reviewed paper analyzed odometer readings of used cars listed from 2016 to 2022.
- Fully electric cars average nearly 4,500 fewer miles annually than conventional models.
- Battery SUVs also saw a gap, although not as large.
The big picture: The data may signal comparatively fewer high-mileage drivers are making the switch, the authors say.
- And EV owners may be using them as a second car alongside a gasoline model, researchers writing in Joule suspect.
- “Range anxiety” due to “immature” charging infrastructure may be a factor.
Catch up fast: Multiple studies using different methods have reached some version of this conclusion about EV miles.
- For instance, in 2021 we covered a study of California driving habits based on home electricity data.


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Olay is returning to its middle-American roots with the choice for its first North American celebrity deal: Carrie Underwood.
The Procter & Gamble-owned brand said during a press conference at Rockefeller Center’s Top of the Rock Wednesday morning that the country music star would appear in an ad campaign breaking in November. The TV, print, digital and in-store effort is to center around cleansing and moisturizing, and is meant to target a younger woman who is past her teens but not yet ready for antiaging products, according to executives.
Also as part of the two-year deal, Underwood will be the face of new Olay products slated to be launched over the course of next year.
“It’s been over a decade I’ve been using some product from Olay,” Underwood, 27, told the gathering at the venue’s 620 Loft & Garden. “Olay is something that women trust. I now get to play more than I ever thought I’d get to play. I get to go try out everything.”
It is the singer’s first beauty deal, P&G executives pointed out.
Typically, such contracts call for a celebrity to receive $1 million per year, and industry sources speculated this deal is on par with that structure.
Chris Heiert, marketing director for Olay, mentioned why Underwood was chosen. “We launched a new campaign in July called ‘Challenge What’s Possible’ talking to the next generation of women who are not ready for antiaging but want great skin. They wanted a face they can relate to that matches the principles of Olay and there was one person who fit that bill,” he said.
Underwood said her two skin care “staples” are Complete All Day UV Moisturizer and Daily Facials cleansing cloths “because it’s hard to find eye makeup remover that doesn’t burn your eyes.” She added the cloths are good for getting rid of concert “gunk.”
Underwood joins a group of Olay global brand ambassadors that includes actress Maggie Cheung in Greater China, singer and actress Lucero in Latin America and actress Thandie Newton in the U.K.
The brand generates just more than $1.2 billion in North American retail sales volume.


text: Zoo Awareness Weekend 2021 Zoo Awareness Weekend is here! We've just dropped a brand new investigation into cruel, circus-style shows in UK zoos! Find out more and take action below. SEA LIONS IN UK ZOOS EXPLOITED IN CIRCUS-LIKE SHOWS The Easter Bank Holiday weekend is the biggest date in many zoos' calendars, although this year lockdown restrictions mean that zoos and aquariums remain shut until 12th April. However, despite the lockdown, there's plenty to do to help animals stuck in captivity in these place.


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Sounds a bit fishy! Nabisco releases new limited-edition Oreo cookies with SWEDISH FISH-flavored filling
- Nabisco has started slowly rolling out the new flavor this week
- Social media users are skeptical about the strange flavor, though several are still curious to try it
- Many who've managed to find it in stores have expressed disappointment
- The company has also made Limeade, Watermelon, Fruit Punch, Cookie Dough, Marshmallow Crispy, and Fruity Crisp Oreo flavors
Nabisco has just added another limited-edition flavor to it's Oreo cookie line-up — and it's not one anyone could have guessed.
The food giant's latest take on the chocolate cookie sandwich features Swedish Fish-flavored cream in the middle, and the combination has many classic Oreo fans scratching their heads.
The new cookies have just started rolling out in some stores this week, and will only be available for a limited time.
Um, OK: Nabisco is now selling Oreos with Swedish Fish-flavored cream in the middle
The filling tastes like the cherry gummy candy and is sandwiched between two chocolate cookies
According to The Impulsive Buy, which managed to nab a package at a Kroger supermarket, the bright red cream in the middle tastes exactly like the cherry gummy candy.
The reviewer wasn't much impressed with the 'overpowering' cherry taste, though — which seemed to confirm the suspicions of internet skeptics.
'Swedish fish Oreos prove they're running out of flavor ideas,' joked Food & Wine's Twitter account.
Some Oreo fans seem skeptical that these could possibly be a good idea
Only a few have managed to find them in stores so far to test them out
Nabisco also recently came out with Fruity Crisp Oreos, another limited-edition treat
Birthday Cake and Marshmallow Crispy flavored ones are also on shelves now
'I NEED to try the Swedish fish Oreos just to ease my mind and confirm that they are definitely the worst food invention known to man,' wrote a less-than-impressed woman from Philadelphia.
'Oreos and Swedish Fish are my 2 favorite snacks/candy... But they have no business being the same thing,' an Ohio man added.
There are, however, still plenty of people who are intrigued enough to want to try the sugary treats — and have yet to be able to find them at their local grocery store.
For the truly impatient, there is always eBay, where packages have begun raking up bids for up to $11 so far.
Some limited-time Oreos, like this one with cookie dough-flavored filling, have been a hit
Often when the company makes fruity-flavored versions, they use vanilla cookies
In the past, they've made Limeade and Watermelon flavors
There's also been a blue and pink-filled Cotton Candy flavor
Nabisco's Cookies n' Creme flavor became a bit of a joke, because it seemed somewhat redundant — like an Oreo-flavored Oreo
The Swedish Fish-filled cookies are just the latest limited-edition flavor that Oreo has introduced in the past few years.
They've also tried out Limeade (with vanilla cookies), the seemingly redundant Cookies n' Creme ice cream, Watermelon, Fruit Punch, and Cotton Candy.
Birthday Cake, Cookie Dough, Marshmallow Crispy, and Fruity Crisp (which seems to have a Fruity Pebbles-like cereal in the cream) are also currently available.
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Black Friday deals on MacBook Air
Rumors continue steadily to surround the production of Apple's MacBook Air 2016 and MacBook professional 2016, with all the newest group claiming the laptops will undoubtedly be available just with time for Ebony Friday sales.
If rumors are real, the most recent MacBook Air and MacBook Pro may a number of hurdles in experiencing good sales, including great deals for earlier Apple products alongside products, The Latinos article reported. The reality that Apple has begun offering its distinct earlier models more supports this possible release time.
The MacBook Air 2016 is rumored is Apple's most effective laptop computer up to now and can even be run on Intel's Skylake U-chipset. Additionally, it is anticipated to run using El Capitan, the technology giant's newest os.
The MacBook Pro 2016 can be expected to through the same the Skylake processor, though it is anticipated to come out in December due to a processor chip that has been discovered in signal AAPLJ951found in El Capitan. Other rumored requirements include two screen choices (a 13-inch display screen and a 15-inch display) and a much better battery pack life.
Apple followers being speculating across MacBook Pro 2016 and MacBook Air 2016's formal launch since, making forecasts including November to January 2016, The Vine Report noted. Some think that their particular release occured down to avoid spoiling the iPad Pro's debut.


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To paywall or not to paywall? That is the question bouncing around many-a-publisher’s head. Of course, if it works, extra revenue is brought in, great. But, what if the audience doesn’t go for it? And the product ends up in a worse state financially than pre-paywall, with dwindling advertisers to boot. Surf forecast website Surf2Surf has decided to take the risk, and though it’s very early days yet, results so far are promising.
Since 2004, Surf2Surf for the wave-riding inclined has been much like the traffic forecast for the morning commuter. It provides accurate reports on popular surfing spots, with live-streaming cams and to-the-minute information. And, as my surf-worshipping co-worker says, the information is invaluable. It saves surfers from having to drive down and check out the conditions for themselves.
So, given the usefulness of the site, the decision to introduce a paywall was a bit of a no-brainer but it was also bordering on necessity Surf2Surf founder and director at Greenroom Surf Media Paul Brunskill says.
“Basically we just got to the point with our business where we just needed a business model change. We already had some subscribers for some of our content, so it was just a case of going one step further and moving a little bit more to the subscriber model.”
For a niche site that size, it’s pretty expensive to run streaming cams and put new ones in which cost several thousand dollars each, he says. “So it’s basically a decision we had to make.”
No easy feat, over the past six months Brunskill and his team worked tirelessly setting up the paywall and making adjustments to the site, launching the paywall last Friday.
“We designed and built everything in-house between the three partners … They are the two developers and I am more on the design side with an ad agency design background. We were silly enough to build the desktop site at the same time as developing our own app for iPhone and Android.”
Surf2Surf is actually a really complex website, he says. “Live streaming, pulling data from sources, manual data input and then the complexities with advertising.”
Affordability for users was high on the priority list, says Brunskill, with a one-month subscription costing $5 and a yearly subscription costing $49.95.
He says a one-month trial is also on offer, to ease users in. “So we really won’t know if the model change will work until the end of next month as [users]will take the one month trial and then make a decision whether to stick with it or not.”
And with monetisation comes expectation, so a bunch of improvements were made to make the site’s offering even more appealing to visitors.
“It’s all changed. The reports are a lot more accurate, the tools are more accurate. There are more updates. We are updating twice a day when we used to just do a dawn report. Forecasting is written and hand modified and we have put in six new cams over the last couple of months. And we’re putting in another one this week.”
And, results are looking pretty good so far. “We had a weekly sign up target that we hit in two days. It’s been really good.”
The advertisers don’t seem all that concerned either.
“It’s been surprising how little advertisers have worried about a drop in readership,” he says. “We have had a lot more inquiries from people just wanting to get on. And our existing sponsors love the new direction and look of the site. We are sponsored by Subaru and Gull then our forecasting sponsor is Dragon Alliance Australia, which is new for 2016.”
The business intends to improve what it does with the sponsors, he says. “We love working with those companies. Subaru and Gull are awesome brands to work with.”
Despite the fact that there are other sites that offer part of the same service, like Airtime (which just added a new live-streaming camera to its network today), Brunskill doesn’t sound all that concerned. “Our focus is on improvement of Surf2Surf.”
And with 125,000 unique users of the site in just the past 30 days, perhaps he shouldn’t be. According to Nielsen it’s also the 7th most popular sports site.
But of course, every situation is different. Surf2Surf is catered to a niche market and doesn’t have the same kind of competition as some of the large media outfits in New Zealand, which might have more to lose.
As Brunskill told StopPress earlier: “Our users are extremely loyal and hungry for information because the ocean is changing constantly. I think we offer quality engagement with our users. Every day is an event. And again, our user demographic is a key draw card.”
Though, there are attractive selling points for advertisers with the paywall system. For example, Digiday highlights the fact that advertisers can gain valuable information through the registration process to a paywalled website.
And isn’t there more merit in having a selection of interested and dedicated readers who are on the site long enough to be exposed to ads, than freeloaders who cast their eyes over a webpage briefly and then move on to some other piece of clickbait on the internet?
Digiday also suggests that the data from registration allows advertisers to pinpoint a select, potentially affluent audience or demographic. So perhaps a loss in traffic can be made up for, more valuably, in other ways.
However, there are other ways to collect audience data and as Empirical Media managing director Steve Goldberg says. “For almost all publishers, the best they can do is use it as a filter in addition to – versus as a replacement for – third-party data,” he says. “One of the challenges is that paywall subscribers tend to be a small fraction of the overall audience, and that can lead to delivery issues, especially in shorter flights.”
The old paywall decision is a tricky one, which depends on many variables, and it can be implemented in many different ways. But, as streaming initiatives like Spotify and Netflix can prove, people are beginning to pay for things they wouldn’t have previously, for a quality user experience.
It’s just a matter of wait and see, watch and learn. Some probably famous person once said it’s better to be second at something (or ‘fast second’ as the Harvard Business Review informs), as then you learn from mistakes and you get out there and do it better. Maybe it’s even better to be fourth?


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Sports marketer and author Jon Spoelstra will share his marketing strategies at the 2002 NAB Radio Show Luncheon, sponsored by ASCAP, in Seattle, Sept. 14. His new book is called, “Marketing Outrageously, How To Increase Your Revenues By Staggering Amounts”. Spoelstra is currently president of Mandalay Sports Entertainment, Pro Teams Division. Mandalay makes major movies (Seven Years in Tibet) and owns four minor league teams. Previously he was president and COO of the New Jersey Nets and Senior VP/General Manager for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Consumer Audio Firm Gets Digital Radio Accreditation Green Light
The DAB tick mark scheme is a U.K. certification program for consumer radios
Georgia Radio Is On the Mind as the Peach State Celebrates #Radio100
A series of radio spots and digital elements honor the state’s diverse population, lifestyles and culture
WorldDAB Urges EU Members to Meet Digital Radio Deadline
Hannon: 2018 EU decision “has transformed the prospects for DAB+ radio in Europe"
Updated: Indiana AM Station Suspends All-Digital Transmission
WIOE’s owner is enthusiastic but says listeners aren’t ready


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Auto manufacturer Toyota Kirloskar Motor will temporarily halt work at two plants at Bidadi in the state of Karnataka to carry out annual maintenance from April 26 to May 14.
The temporary halt will affect production while supply of vehicles will be limited. The immediate demand from consumers will be met from the current inventory pipeline of finished goods.
The company has clarified that the temporary shutdown is solely for maintenance purposes and not related to COVID-19 cases or shortage of semiconductor chips. During maintenance, only a few employees will be permitted wo work and expected to maintain social-distancing protocols.
The two factories at Bidadi have a consolidated annual production capacity of 310,000 units.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor is the second major company to halt production in India after Hero MotoCorp. The two-wheeler manufacturer had suspended production from April 22 at all its five plants in India owing to escalating COVID-19 cases.


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The product chief for Ford EVs Darren Palmer recently shared quite a few interesting tidbits about the company’s upcoming Mustang Mach-E electric car.
Palmer sat down with the EV trade publication Electrek, and mentioned why Ford made sure it had a 300-mile (roughly, 482km) range, why it’s graced with the Mustang name and more.
Ford focused on making sure that at least one trim option for the Mach-E had a range over 300-miles (482km) because when it focus tested the car, people felt a lot less range anxiety when they saw the three in the range instead of a two.
To further prove this, Palmer said that 80 percent of Mustang Pre-orders are for the long-range version with the maximum range.
Another interesting story that Palmer tells is how the team decided to use Mustang branding. Originally the EV project was going to be a new version of the Ford Focus. The team made it as far as building the car as a clay mockup before realizing that they needed to find a way to add more passion to the vehicle, reports Electrek.
They did this, of course, by revamping the car into the Mustang-like EV that we know of today.
Ford has already announced that it’s working on an electric F-150, and Plamer hints in the interview that Ford is also looking to make another electric SUV since that’s one of the company’s strong suits.


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Fortnite Fever Shows Signs of Cooling, Giving a Boost to EA
(Bloomberg) -- Electronic Arts Inc. is rising for the first time in six days as investors took solace in data that showed a steep drop in revenue from competitor Epic Games Inc.’s breakout multiplayer gaming phenomenon Fortnite.
A report released late last week by SuperData, which tracks the industry, showed that Fortnite’s revenue on all platforms declined 48 percent month-over-month in January. EA shares rallied as much as 3.9 percent Tuesday, following a five-day drop. They ended Monday’s session down less than 0.1 percent after falling as much as 2.4 percent earlier in the day.
The slip in revenue from Fortnite -- which is free to play and relies on in-game purchases -- is a positive for Electronic Arts. The Redwood City, California-based company’s own battle royale title, Apex Legends, has been gaining traction since its Feb. 4 release.
Jeff Cohen, a research analyst at Stephens Inc., says the decline in Fortnite revenue this January is not related to Apex Legends, given the game’s surprise launch last month. However, EA is largely bouncing back from some disappointment yesterday, related to “critical consensus to Anthem as well as some sales data that came out of the U.K.,” he said.
Cohen remains bullish on the stock with a $120 price target, saying EA has the “strongest competitive position of the four major public publishers with their stable sports franchises, Apex Legends, as well as a pretty strong slate coming next fall with Titanfall and Star Wars.”
People shouldn’t begin “prepping any Fortnite obituaries any time soon”, as a dip in revenue doesn’t particularly indicate declining base of users or less overall play, TechCrunch wrote in a report Monday evening. Fortnite’s free-to-play model was never going to track traditional game numbers, given its reliance on in-game, digital purchases, the report said.
Electronic Arts’ Apex Legends game is seen as the next formidable competitor to Fortnite as the company is said to be pursuing an entry into the Chinese gaming industry. The company’s shares are trading 31 percent above the level where they bottomed out during last year’s December market rout.
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.


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Companies-in-rickmansworth, kathryn ozmaya lives with fianc darren kemp 51 a company director and children james and their twin daughters frida. Prop store - one of the world's leading film and tv memorabilia companies - has announced it is to hold the auction will be held at prop store's uk headquarters in rickmansworth over 460 rare and, rac cars is a trading name of rac motoring services registered in england with company number 01424399 registered address: rac house brockhurst crescent walsall ws5 4aw. A bus company has donated hundreds of pounds to help pay for the care of a two year old boy oscar connor from rickmansworth was born without a tibia bone in both legs and has had both of his knees, i searched online for range rover i found the nice cat at this company i tried to contact the owner he was very nice and explained to me about the full specifications then i arranged for viewing.
The company operates its business through two divisions senior was founded by david lycett green on december 18 1933 and is headquartered in rickmansworth the united kingdom, theater company set a new guinness world record for fastest theatrical production of "annie" at watersmeet theatre in rickmansworth hertfordshire united kingdom more information about stage.
Rac cars is a trading name of rac motoring services registered in england with company number 01424399 registered address: rac house brockhurst crescent walsall ws5 4aw, stephen lane chief executive of film and tv memorabilia company prop store said carter jones james bond poster. They confirmed the car was owned by a hire company and had been rented out car being in collision with several people outside the tesco store in harefield road rickmansworth the ambulance, lourides from rickmansworth in hertfordshire was excluded from the body's membership immediately and cannot reapply for at least five years he has been the director of 43 companies over the years.
Openreach the uk's digital infrastructure company has announced 29 towns portrush portstewart rickmansworth; royal tunbridge wells; stanecastle; swindon; thames ditton; tonbridge; watford; and


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The Piazza at Schmidt’s, that curious construction in Northern Liberties that is home to beloved burger nut Tommy Up, will host its very own farmers’ market starting January 16. While launching a farmers’ market in the dead of winter may seem both counter-intuitive and turnip-friendly, market manager Kyle Perry explains the clever strategy behind this maneuver and promises you’ll see more than a pile of potatoes to welcome you.
“We wanted to do a year-round market,” he explains, “but to start in the summer would put us at a disadvantage, since the first-rate farmers go to other markets” like Headhouse. By launching the market in January, Perry was able to lure some of these well-known vendors like Griggstown Quail Farm, Birchrun Hills, Coulton Organics and Highland Orchands, who he says aren’t ordinarily active during the winter months.
Perry says to expect, of course, root vegetables, from the lineup of 20 vendors, but since some of the farmers do have greenhouses, there should be cucumbers, tomatoes and salad greens. There will also be grass-fed beef, naturally-raised pork, free-range chicken and lamb. One vendor, M & B Farview Farm, out of Berks County, will also be grilling their meats, so you can grab a grass-bed burger or a pork sausage while you shop.
Starting January 16, the market will take place outdoors at the Piazza at Schmidt’s every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Added bonus: free Piazza parking on Germantown Avenue.
Piazza at Schmidts, 2nd and Hancock Streets


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Shares of Carnival (NYSE: CCL)(NYSE: CUK) were up 0.5% in afternoon trading Monday after announcing its Princess Cruises had completed their first voyages after having been shut down for nearly one and a half years.
Carnival's stock had opened the day up more than 4% but gave back most of those gains as the day went on.
The cruise industry was arguably treated worse by the federal government than any other industry in the country as cruise ship operators were forbidden from sailing even as virtually the rest of the economy was reopened.
Although the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had issued a conditional sail order that seemingly would authorize the resumption of cruise operations, in reality, it kept ships in port. It wasn't until Florida sued the agency that it finally announced cruise lines could begin sailing again.
Princess Cruises Majestic Princess ship traveled from Seattle to Alaska and back again on the Carnival brand's relaunch of its cruise itineraries.
Yet it still took an act of Congress to allow the ship to sail. The Passenger Vessel Services Act requires any cruise ship traveling between two U.S. ports to first stop in another country if the ship is not a U.S.-flagged vessel.t Archaic maritime laws mean virtually no cruise ships carry a U.S. flag, but because Canadian ports are still closed to cruise ships, the industry wouldn't be able to visit Canada without an exemption.
Now that cruise ships are taking to the high seas once more, the travel and tourism industry may be able to truly recover from the extended shut down of operations.


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We recently wrote a post entitled, “Cannabis Collections Headaches and What to Do.” In it, she discussed a problem that’s been plaguing California cannabis businesses throughout: distributors and retailers that don’t pay their bills. Towards the end of the article, she mentioned a piece of proposed legislation to address the problem, AB 766, which would allow – and even require – the state to police cannabis contracts. While I’m in favor of coming up with ways to fix the status quo, this isn’t it. If passed, AB 766 would in my view lead to massive problems, both for licensees and the state. Let’s unpack.
What AB 766 would do
AB 766 would apply only to sales made after January 1, 2024. It would require any licensee to pay for goods and services from another licensee within 15 calendar days after the date of the final invoice. The date set forth on the invoice could not be more than 30 days after the date goods or services are transferred. So hypothetically, if a cannabis contract has net 30 payment terms and is paid 46 days after delivery, problems begin.
Licensees that sell goods with a value of at least $5,000 and don’t receive payment on time must report the unpaid invoice to the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC). At that time, the DCC is forced to intervene in the cannabis contract breach. DCC must then notify the non-paying licensee. If they don’t pay within 30 days, the DCC can issue a notice of warning or citation. If this happens multiple times, the DCC must commence a disciplinary action.
Notably, if a licensee is reported, it cannot buy goods on credit from another licensee until it pays the initial unpaid invoice.
AB 766 also does not apply to excise tax collection.
Why AB 766 is a bad idea
I want to start this section out by noting, in no uncertain terms, that violations of cannabis contracts are bad. There are lots of licensees that simply skip town on invoices for no good reason. It goes without saying that not paying undisputed invoices is a bad thing. But I do not think that AB 766 will make a huge dent in the problem and instead could create even more problems.
First off, AB 766 does much more than tell licensees to pay on time – it instead sets the requirement for what “on time” can even mean. I have seen plenty of cannabis contracts with fully negotiated payment terms that might violate AB 766. If AB 766 becomes law, it will mean that the government dictates commercial contact payment terms.
AB 766 would also force licensees to report other licensees that have not fully paid outstanding invoices. Reporting would be mandatory. It would apply even if the other party was just a few hundred dollars short. It is inevitable that licensees will not report every violation. Would they then be subject to potential discipline? It sure seems like it. I can’t tell you how much harder it will be to settle payment disputes once one side has reported the other to the state. I can entertain an argument that licensees should be free to report each other, but requiring reporting of contract breaches is totally indefensible.
Most egregiously, licensees who are reported would be legally prohibited from buying goods or services on credit from other licensees until they pay the invoices for which they were reported in full. All that has to happen is that a licensee is reported. The person making the report has to give the DCC almost no information in order to make the report. There is no hearing. There does not even seem to be an opportunity to contest the report. The second a report is made, the other side loses its rights to buy goods on credit – presumably even under preexisting contractual arrangements with third parties. This seems like an obvious due process concern and ripe for abuse.
Along those lines, AB 766 doesn’t even really address what happens in the event of a disputed invoice. What if XYZ retailer doesn’t pay ABC because the goods XYZ bought were moldy? Well, it looks like ABC would still have to report it. Again, this makes no sense.
How to fix AB 766
I do not think AB 766 will solve the problem at hand. Instead, it is likely to lead to bigger problems. It seems inevitable that people will be punished for things like failure to report, that licensees will be subject to penalties when they have legitimate grounds to dispute payment, and so on. The bill would also likely bog down the DCC with reports. And given the state’s spotty history with cannabis enforcement, it’s entirely possible that many of those reports would not even be timely addressed.
Rather than create an overly complicated and mandatory reporting system, it would be much simpler if the state could create a statutory right to recover attorneys’ fees in actions between licensees. Many licensees still do “handshake” contracts (still a bad idea!) with limited or no rights to recover attorneys’ fees. Add fees into the mix and you give unpaid licensees a major tool to fight back.
If the state decides to implement a reporting system anyways, then AB 766 should be overhauled so that (1) reporting is optional, (2) licensees can set their own payment terms without the state’s input, and (3) non-paying licensees do not get stripped of any rights until they have an opportunity for some kind of hearing. If the state won’t do that, then there will be problems. Stay tuned to the Canna Law Blog for more updates.


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Realme is going strong in the Indian market with back to back launches, taking on Xiaomi and former market leader Samsung. The Oppo spin-off already scheduled ab event on November 20 in India for launching the Realme X2 Pro flagship smartphone. Alongside the Realme X2 Pro, we're expecting the company to the Realme X2 as well with Snapdragon 730G chipset. But besides these two phones, Realme may launch another smartphone called Realme 5s as a stripped-down version of the Realme 5. Maybe the Realme 5s could be the Vivo U10 smartphone after all; Realme is a sub-brand of BBK Electronics which also owns Vivo. Right now, we don't have any information regarding the Realme 5s, besides the name. The smartphone was spotted on the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) website, which indicates an imminent launch.
Realme 5s: What We Know So Far?
Earlier this year, Realme launched a smartphone called Realme 3i, as a watered-down version of the Realme 3. The Realme 3i featured a similar design as its bigger sibling, but the company downgraded the processor to MediaTek Helio P60. For the unaware, the Realme 3 arrived with Helio P70 SoC. That said, we may see the same trend happening again. The Realme 5s could be a downgraded version of the Realme 5, but these are just our expectations and nothing is confirmed from Realme officially.
Also, we're expecting the Realme 5s to be a re-branded Vivo U10 smartphone which was launched in India right after the Realme 5 series. The Vivo U10 is an Amazon Exclusive smartphone currently retailing for Rs 8,990. The U10 sports a 6.35-inch HD+ display, Snapdragon 665 SoC, up to 4GB of RAM & 64GB of internal storage, triple rear camera setup and a 5000mAh battery.
The Realme 5, on the other hand, features similar specs as the Vivo U10, but it offers quad-camera setup. It will be interesting to see in which aspects Realme will make compromises to achieve an affordable price tag. Notably, the Realme 5s also spotted on Thailand certification website, as reported by Nashville Chatter.
Realme X2 Pro Launching in India on November 20
On October 16 when Xiaomi is all set to launch the Redmi Note 8 series in India, Realme has sent out media invites for an event to be held on November 20, more than a month later. Realme already confirmed that it would be launching the Realme X2 Pro in India on November 20, but the sale will probably begin in the first week of December. The Realme X2 or the Realme XT 730G aimed at the gamers will also make its debut on the same day. That said, both these phones are already available for purchase in other markets, so India will getting them a bit later this time around.
The Realme XT 730G will be a mid-range smartphone taking on the Redmi K20 smartphone that's currently retailing for Rs 19,999 in India. The Realme X2 Pro is a flagship smartphone running on Snapdragon 855+ SoC. Right now, we don't have the prices of these phones, but they'll surely take on the Redmi K20 and Redmi K20 Pro smartphones in the sub-continent. Also, Xiaomi may reduce the prices of its Redmi K20 series to take on the Realme X2 series.


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The landscape of cyberattacks related to cyberattacks on companies ended 2021 with some signs of improvement. At least when it comes to the amounts paid by companies to attackers after being hacked. ransomware. Thus, according to VentureBeat, after the rise we saw in the third quarter of 2021, in which the average payment was higher than usual, in the last three months of the year, the payments made for these attacks they roamed on average $167,000an amount that is 44.3% lower than that of the third quarter.
In general, in addition, fewer ransoms are also paid for these attacks than are requested. Regarding the reduction in costs and seriousness, something also noticed between October and December, it may be due to the fact that the insurance companies required more solid backup copies so that the insurance covered the companies that contract it, which helps to expand the There is an increasing trend towards more sophisticated approaches in companies when it comes to mitigating the risks associated with ransomware.
Regarding the specific concerns and perspectives of SMEs, there are signs that they are still developing their investments in cybersecurity. Small and medium-sized businesses are primarily concerned with external threats, and particularly with attack vectors, including both phishing and ransomware. But only 8% of smaller companies, which are those with fewer than 50 employees, have a cybersecurity budget dedicated to protecting against attacks and vulnerabilities.
Meanwhile, in companies with more than 250 employees, 18% have a specific budget for online security. However, it is also observed that the cybersecurity spendingin general, is going up. 60% of companies expect their investment to risewhich is supported by both its CEOs and senior managers.
In general, companies complain of a lack of resources. So do the general complexity of security. These are the main factors that prevent your online security defenses from improving. Small businesses are more concerned with keeping up with new threats. As for the larger ones, they have more concerns about vendor security breaches, highlighting the fact that many companies can fail to care and act on a culture of internal security.


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Fourteenth MWC to focus on smart connectivityThe fourteenth edition of the Mobile World Congress is being held at Fira de Barcelona from 25 to 28 February. As ever, this year’s event is an opportunity to add vitality to the city’s mobile digital industry and to attract and retain talent. This time around the biggest mobile technology congress in the world will be centring on smart connectivity.
This year’s edition of the Mobil World Congress, the fair with the biggest economic impact for the city, invites people to reflect on their personal relationship with technology and the impact it has on society. This 2019 edition is expected to attract more than 107,000 visitors, with an economic return of 473 million euros.
Once again, the MWC comes with parallel activities which broaden the range of opportunities to establish synergies and learn about innovative ideas.
One of the events being held as part of the MWC will be the 4YFN, bringing together emerging companies, investors, corporations and public institutions and enabling new connections and business opportunities to be forged, as well as boosting and consolidating the growth of this sector at a local level.
The Youth Mobile Festival, or YoMo, is also back again this year, offering theatre shows and over a dozen interactive workshops to promote science and technology in the educational environment.
A new edition of Women4Tech is also being held simultaneously. This event is aimed at strengthening the role of women in the mobile industry and showcasing best practices to favour female leadership.
Mobile Week Barcelona
The week before the Mobile World Congress brings the third edition of Mobile Week, an event taking the digital transformation into Barcelona’s neighbourhoods with over 130 free activities for people of all ages.


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The treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, has joined Australia’s voice to a coalition of nations urging the US and China to abandon their trade war, arguing the entire global economy is suffering as a result.
In a pointed plea that doesn’t mention the economic superpowers by name, but is unmistakably aimed at them, the treasurers and finance ministers of four middle-power nations – Australia, Canada, Singapore, and Indonesia – have warned “the risks of collateral damage are growing”.
“We should not resort to unilateralism and protectionism,” the group write in an article on the website of Australian Strategic Policy Institute publication the Strategist. “Pursuing confrontation instead of dialogue will only exacerbate risks, erode confidence and weaken the prospect of global economic recovery. Compromise is key to achieving win–win outcomes and mutual trust.”
While acknowledging that legitimate issues in the global trade system must be addressed, Frydenberg, the treasurer of Australia, Heng Swee Keat, deputy prime minister and finance minister of Singapore, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, finance minister of Indonesia, and Canadian finance minister Bill Morneau argue that uncertainty over the global outlook is forcing a slowdown in trade and manufacturing.
“Financial-market volatility and currency instability are on the rise, amid declining capital flows to emerging economies. Deteriorating global trade conditions are affecting investor confidence, business spending and productivity.
“We need to reverse course, and that requires acting collectively … we need to protect free and open markets.”
The ministers said the multilateral system established after the end of the second world war “allows both big and small countries to fulfil their potential”. Australia, Canada and Indonesia are members of the G20. Singapore is a regular invitee to the forum as leader of the Global Governance Group of small to medium-sized economies.
“The free flow of trade, investment and ideas has helped lift more people out of poverty than ever before,” the ministers write. “And the world’s growing middle classes are now broadening the opportunities for further exchange of goods, services and innovation.”
The ministers argue the multilateral system, in particular bodies such as the G20, can return the global economy to a more transparent and cooperative environment.
They cite the 2008 collective response to the global financial crisis and the 2015 measures to address multinational corporate tax avoidance as examples of international cooperation that had benefited all countries.
“To restore lost confidence, our multilateral system needs newfound strength to withstand the complexity of our current circumstances.”
The ministers’ remarks come as US president Donald Trump continues to escalate his rhetorical trade war against China, describing it as a “threat to the world” and arguing Beijing uses money made through unfair trade practices to boost its military spending.
“Obviously, China is a threat to the world in a sense, because they’re building a military faster than anybody,” Trump said. “I view China in many different ways. But right now, I’m thinking about trade. But, you know, trade equals military.”
Since July 2018, the US has imposed tariffs on US$360bn of Chinese goods and has plans to tax nearly all Chinese imports by the end of 2019. China has retaliated with tariffs on more than $110bn of US products.
Signs of progress are undermined by setbacks. Last week, about 400 goods, including plastic straws, dog leashes and Christmas tree lights, were excluded by the US from tariffs. But a Chinese trade delegation hastily cancelled a planned visit to farms in Montana and Nebraska, a trip widely forecast as indication Beijing may have been prepared to increase its purchases of US agricultural products.
As both countries prepare to return to high-level negotiations next month, Trump quashed speculation he might settle for an interim trade deal with China to boost the US economy in the lead-up to the presidential election next year.
“I’m looking for a complete deal, I’m not looking for a partial deal. We’re looking for the big deal.”
The US is publicly burnishing its collegiate credentials, meeting with key allies in recent days. Trump has had effusive and high-profile public events with the Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison, and the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, in the past week.


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Archive for the ‘Freeman News’ Category
Thursday, April 17th, 2014
Tympanogen, a biomedical startup founded by Tulane University students Elaine Horn-Ranney, who will receive a PhD in biomedical engineering in May, and Parastoo Khoshakhlagh, a student in the biomedical engineering doctoral program, took home the grand prize of $25,000 at the 2014 Tulane Business Model Competition.
Parastoo Khoshakhlagh, a doctoral student in the Tulane biomedical engineering program, makes the winning presentation for Tympanogen. (Photo by Cheryl Gerber)
The contest, an annual presentation of the A. B. Freeman School of Business and the Tulane Entrepreneurs Association, took place Friday (April 11) in the Freeman Auditorium on the uptown campus. The awards were announced Friday night at the annual Tulane Council of Entrepreneurs Awards Gala at the Westin Canal Place Hotel.
In winning this year’s competition, Tympanogen edged out fellow Tulane finalist InVision Biomedical, which earned a second-place prize of $10,000 with its pitch for a device to aid doctors treating tracheostomy patients, and Million Dollar Scholar, an online platform designed to help high school students learn how to win scholarships and avoid student debt.
Tympanogen won the top prize with its plan for Perf-Fix, a gel patch for repair of chronic perforations in the tympanic membrane of the ear. Currently the only treatment for tympanic membrane tears is surgery, which can cost up to $18,000 and offers just a 40 percent success rate. Tympanogen’s gel patch, on the other hand, will cost approximately $1,800 and has a success rate of up to 95 percent.
According to competition judge Chris Papamichael (BSM ’96), principal and co-founder of the Domain Cos., Tympanogen impressed him and his fellow judges both with its product and with its solid financials.
“The product was very viable, they had strong margins and there was a lack of competition, whereas some of the other competitors had some stiff competition,” Papamichael said. “Tympanogen just seemed to be the most viable.”
In addition to winning the cash prize, Tympanogen also earned a trip to the International Business Model Competition at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, which will take place in May 2014.
Monday, March 31st, 2014
Christopher Conoscenti (MBA/JD ’01) has served as a judge for the Rolanette and Berdon Lawrence Finance Case Competition for the past five years, but he says the 2014 contest, which took place at the A. B. Freeman School of Business on Friday (March 28), was without a doubt the toughest yet.
From left, Finance Case Competition judges Christopher Conoscenti, Chuck Tilis, Claire Liu and Joe Agular. Conoscenti said this year’s competition was the closest in the five years he’s served as a judge.
“This was the hardest year to judge out of any of the years that I’ve judged it,” said Conoscenti, managing director of Energy Investment Banking at JP Morgan Securities. “It was shades of gray in terms of differences between who we picked for number one versus two, three, four and five. It was just really tight.”
In the end, Conoscenti and his fellow judges — Joe Agular (A&S ’81, MBA ’88), investment manager at Johnson Rice & Co.; Claire Liu, assistant treasurer at LyondellBasell Industries; and Chuck Tilis (A&S ’77, MBA ’78) , partner, Assurance Leadership Team, at PricewaterhouseCoopers — decided that Ryan Bendinelli, Yifan Xu, Aaron Gaddie and Paul Whitmire, a team of MBAs from Vanderbilt University, had edged out the competition enough to win first place and this year’s grand prize of $7,000.
A team from the University of North Carolina — Joseph Quinn, Michael Baccich, Jimmy Colavita and Newton Sears — earned second-place honors and a prize of $5,000, while a team from the University of Texas at Dallas — Adriana Pizana, Samir Patel, Brit Sundberg and Mohammed Bourji — took home the third-place prize of $3,000.
“I’ve done this six, seven times at least, and it’s a real privilege to do it,” Agular (A&S ’81, MBA ’88) told the student teams. “I really thank you for having me again because I enjoy finance, first of all, but I also enjoy seeing how bright the future is for all of you, because you’re very talented. You all had great presentations, and it was tough to judge.”
In addition to the top three finishers, this year’s competition also featured MBA teams from Rice University, Washington University, University of South Carolina and Tulane University.
Dean Ira Solomon, far left, and competition sponsors Berdon and Rolanette Lawrence, center, awarded this year’s grand prize of $7,000 to a team from Vanderbilt University.
The Finance Case Competition began in 1997 and has been sponsored by Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence since 1998. Berdon Lawrence (BBA ’64, MBA ’65) is the founder of Hollywood Marine and former chairman of Kirby Corp., an operator of inland tank barges headquartered in Houston. Kirby purchased Hollywood Marine in 1999. Lawrence is also a former member of the Business School Council and a former member of the Board of Tulane.
“It’s hard to believe it’s been 18 years, but it’s been fun for me,” Lawrence said before announcing this year’s winners. “My MBA from Tulane was really helpful in my being able to build a company, so this is a nice way for me to tell Tulane that I appreciate what they did for me with my education.”
To see more photos from the competition, including photos of all the winning teams, visit the Freeman School’s Flickr page.
Thursday, March 27th, 2014
Judges of the Tulane Business Model Competition’s semifinals round emerged from an upstairs room in New Orleans’ historic Gallier Hall on Tuesday (March 25) with three named finalists: Tympanogen offers a new treatment to replace surgery for chronic tympanic membrane perforations or holes in the eardrum; InVision Biomedical offers a device designed to help alleviate common tracheostomy complications; and Million Dollar Scholar hopes to help educate high school students on how to fund their college educations.
Tulane Business Model Competition finalist Ras Asan, COO of Million Dollar Scholar, presents to judges at New Orleans Entrepreneur Week. (Photo by Maggy Baccinelli)
These businesses were chosen from a diverse group of eight startups, including a latke cart and catering service, a sugar cane juice drink and a volunteer management service, all of which presented at the New Orleans Entrepreneur Week event.
Finalists won an additional $2,000 each and the chance to win $25,000 more at the closing event on April 11.
Of the winners, competition judge and president of Medline Industries Andy Mills said, “There is a great understanding that products that improve health care, either by lowering costs or eliminating pain through a less invasive procedure, will inherently succeed.”
He added, “There is also a great need for Million Dollar Scholar, which was a well established, buttoned-up group. They are selling a book, they’ve won awards, and they have a good web presence.”
Ras Asan, chief operating officer of Million Dollar Scholar, appreciated the judges’ support. “We’ve received a lot of good feedback on the services we provide, but having such an esteemed group of entrepreneurs validate what we are doing was really rewarding,” Asan said.
The judging panel included eight professional entrepreneurs representing a wide range of industries, and all are proud Tulane alumni.
“I really appreciated the opportunity to see what the students are doing,” Mills said. “It made me feel good about the future and all that is happening at Tulane.”
Tuesday, March 25th, 2014
Lynn S. Paine, the John G. McLean Professor and senior associate dean for faculty development at Harvard Business School, discussed the changing global environment and what it means for the next generation of business leaders in a special presentation at the A. B. Freeman School of Business on Thursday, March 20. Paine’s talk, “Leadership and the Future of Capitalism: Getting Serious about Sustainability,” was part of the Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Series.
“Lynn’s insights into what business leaders must do to address emerging political and economic challenges was both timely and fascinating,” said Ira Solomon, dean of the Freeman School. “It was truly a pleasure to give our students the chance to interact with a scholar of Lynn’s stature.”
Lynn Paine, right, with Freeman School Dean Ira Solomon, discussed leadership in the current business environment as part of the Dean’s Distinguished Speaker Series.
Paine is a member and former chair of the General Management unit at Harvard and co-founded the school’s required course on Leadership and Corporate Accountability. She currently co-chairs the Senior Executive Program for China. Her research focuses on the leadership and governance of companies that meld high ethical standards with outstanding financial results. Her publications, including more than 200 case studies, have appeared in a variety of books, periodicals and scholarly journals. Paine is most recently co-author of Capitalism at Risk: Rethinking the Role of Business with HBS colleagues Joe Bower and Dutch Leonard.
Paine’s other books include Value Shift: Why Companies Must Merge Social and Financial Imperatives to Achieve Superior Performance (McGraw-Hill 2003) and Leadership, Ethics, and Organizational Integrity (McGraw-Hill 1998). Her most recent articles include A Global Leader’s Guide to Managing Business Conduct (with Rohit Deshpandé and Joshua Margolis), Global Capitalism at Risk: What Are You Doing About It? (with Joe Bower and Dutch Leonard), and The China Rules: A Practical Guide for CEOs Managing Multinational Corporations in the People’s Republic—all published in the Harvard Business Review.
A member of Phi Beta Kappa and a summa cum laude graduate of Smith College, Paine holds a doctorate in moral philosophy from Oxford University and a law degree from the Harvard Law School. Before joining the Harvard faculty in 1990, she taught at Georgetown University Business School and the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business as well as National Cheng Chi University in Taiwan.
Monday, March 24th, 2014
Eight semifinalists will be pitching live in the completely revamped Tulane Business Model Competition during New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW), the sixth annual premier showcase event for the local entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The pitches will take place in Gallier Hall Ballroom 3A on Tuesday, March 25, at 1:30 p.m. The event is free and registration is available at the door for attendees who arrive at 1 p.m.
The 2014 Tulane Business Model Competition will award $25,000 to the early-stage venture demonstrating the best customer-tested business model.
The top three pitches will be awarded $2,000 and granted access to the final round pitches on April 11th at Tulane University and a chance to win $25,000 and enter the International Business Model Competition as a semifinalist.
Semifinalists include: ComeFail, CCC, Fleur de Latkes, InVision Biomedical, Million Dollar Scholar, Threadix, Tympanogen, and US Fresh Cane.
The competition was completely redesigned to better reward the practical aspects of what make startups successful – the ability to rapidly adapt to customers’ needs. Judges will be examining each company and how they have been able to prove customer validation and adapt to the process of creating a business model.
Judges include: Charles Allen (UC ’92), President/Managing Director, Riptide Investments; Wally Boston (MBA ’78), President and CEO of American Public University System (APUS); Larry Connelly (MBA ’82), Former CEO, Connolly LLC; Pierce Marshall (BSM ’90), President and CEO, Élevage Capital Management, LLC; Ti Martin (MBA ’84), co-proprietor of the Commander’s Family of Restaurants, co-founder and board chairman of the New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute; Andy Mills (BSM ’83) – President, Medline Industries; and Matt Schwartz (BSM ’99), Principal and Founder, The Domain Companies.
Drew Mouton (BS ’94, MBA ’12) former CEO of Carrollton Group, Founder/Managing Director of Caerus Management will be the Master of Ceremony.
Tulane Entrepreneurs Association (TEA) President Adrian Mendez said the organization is excited to have so many students involved in NOEW. “We excited to have such access to and participation in the nationally recognized entrepreneur week. We’re eager to continue building upon the entrepreneurial movement across the region.”
Through the competition, the Tulane IDEAcorps team and many attendees having ties to Tulane, the university has become an integral part of NOEW. “We are thrilled that Tulane is hosting one of their major Entrepreneurship events during NOEW 2014. We have a long-standing partnership with the University and are excited to see Tulane driving Entrepreneurship initiatives, both on campus, and throughout broader New Orleans community,” said managing director of The Idea Village Emily Madero.
“The competition has always been a flagship event that supports local–now regional– entrepreneurs and programs,” Mendez continued. “As the program grows, we hope to continue to motivate and inspire students to be on the forefront of entrepreneurial activity with the resources we provide.”
Follow along with the Business Model Competition on Facebook at facebook.com/tulanebusinessmodelcompetition and on Twitter at twitter.com/tulanebmc. TEA can be found at facebook.com/TulaneTEA. More information is available at tulane2014.istart.org.
Friday, March 21st, 2014
With more than 250 million users worldwide, LinkedIn is the world’s leading business networking website, but up until now it’s been difficult for Freeman alumni to use LinkedIn to connect and communicate with fellow alumni.
Freeman Connect is a social network that enables business alumni to use their LinkedIn accounts to connect and communicate with fellow alumni.
That changed in March with the introduction of Freeman Connect. The new site, developed in partnership with Graduway, a London-based provider of alumni networking platforms, enables alumni to sync their LinkedIn accounts with their alumni profiles to create a social network exclusively for the Freeman community. Users can post photos, search for classmates and send messages to fellow alumni regardless of their LinkedIn connections. Users can also view jobs posted by other users.
“The beauty of Freeman Connect is that it leverages the power of LinkedIn, a platform that virtually all of our alumni use on a daily basis,” says Leonard Williams, director of the Freeman School’s Career Management Center. “The challenge in the past was getting alumni to update and maintain their profiles. With Freeman Connect, all that information is already up-to-date through LinkedIn, so when an alumnus signs in, he or she has immediate access to a large, incredibly diverse network of Freeman alumni.”
Beginning in April, Freeman Connect will be open to current Freeman students as well, providing students with a powerful tool to build their professional networks and alumni with the opportunity to mentor students and help them break into the career of their choice.
Freeman Connect is a sister site of sorts to Tulane Connect, which the Tulane Alumni Association recently launched as a social network for all university alumni. Freeman alumni are welcome to join both networks, but Tulane Connect members who are not graduates of the business school cannot access Freeman Connect.
For more information about Freeman Connect, contact Williams at email@example.com or 504-862-8492 or Rhonda Brown at firstname.lastname@example.org or 504-862-8470.
Thursday, March 20th, 2014
Tulane University’s A. B. Freeman School of Business will honor restaurateur Ti Martin (MBA ’84) as Tulane Distinguished Entrepreneur of the Year and philanthropists Dana (N ’80, L ’84) and Stanley (BSM ’80) Day as Tulane Outstanding Social Entrepreneurs of the Year at the 2014 Tulane Council of Entrepreneurs Award Gala. The ceremony will take place on Friday, April 11, at the Westin New Orleans Canal Place.
The Freeman School’s Levy-Rosenblum Institute for Entrepreneurship presents the awards each year to highlight outstanding entrepreneurs in the community. The Tulane Distinguished Entrepreneur of Year Award honors individuals who combine entrepreneurial success with philanthropic generosity and service to the community. The Tulane Outstanding Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award recognizes individuals dedicated to solving social problems and improving the community through the use of entrepreneurial principles. Tulane President Scott Cowen and Freeman School Dean Ira Solomon will present the awards.
Martin is co-proprietor of the Commander’s Family of Restaurants, which includes Commander’s Palace, Café Adelaide and SoBou in New Orleans and Brennan’s of Houston. Martin is also co-founder and board chairman of the New Orleans Culinary & Hospitality Institute, which is currently developing a culinary and hospitality school in partnership with Tulane, Delgado and the University of New Orleans. In February, NOCHI was selected to redevelop the former Louisiana Artworks building, which will serve as the institute’s home. A longtime champion of business and civic causes in New Orleans, Martin has served on the boards of GNO Inc., the Bureau of Governmental Research, the Idea Village, the Young Leadership Council, the New Orleans Hospitality Strategic Task Force and the New Orleans Business Council. Martin was also a co-founder of the New Orleans “Proud to Call it Home” campaign.
Dana and Stan Day began supporting Tulane University personally after Katrina and expanded their role when their NewDay Foundation began supporting social entrepreneurship initiatives at Tulane in 2009. Through the foundation, the Days have sponsored programs including the NewDay Social Venture Challenge, the NewDay Social Entrepreneurship Distinguished Speakers Series and the NewDay Professor of Social Entrepreneurship. Dana Day is a member of the Board of Tulane and Stan Day serves on the President’s Council.
“The name Ti Martin is synonymous with the hospitality industry in New Orleans, and Dana and Stan Day are among the very biggest supporters of social entrepreneurship and innovation at Tulane University,” said Dean Ira Solomon. “We’re delighted to be able to recognize Ti and Dana and Stan as our 2014 Entrepreneurs of the Year.”
For more information about the Entrepreneurs of the Year and the Tulane Council of Entrepreneurs Awards Gala, contact Lina Alfieri Stern at 504-865-5455 or Lina.AlfieriStern@tulane.edu.
Friday, February 28th, 2014
The Tulane Entrepreneurs Association (TEA) has announced eight semi-finalists for the group’s newly revamped Tulane Business Model Competition.
The 2014 Tulane Business Model Competition will award $35,000 to startup ventures with consumer-tested business ideas.
After a 13-year-run, the contest was redesigned to better reward the practical aspects of what make startups successful – the ability to rapidly adapt to customers’ needs. It offers a $25,000 grand prize and $10,000 for the runner-up.
“From food carts and hospitality ventures to educational technology and biomedical devices, our eight finalists truly represent a cross-section of the New Orleans startup scene,” says Ralph Maurer, executive director of the Levy-Rosenblum Institute for Entrepreneurship. “I’m looking forward to seeing how these talented young entrepreneurs hone their business models in preparation for the final competition on April 11.”
The semi-finalists are:
• ComeFail, a space for college students to fail safely and a platform for supportive learning and exploration.
• CCC, a venture that offers customized volunteer and hospitality experiences for customers so that they can easily enjoy, learn, and support New Orleans like never before.
• Fleur de Latkes, a new food cart and catering business in uptown New Orleans that specializes in bringing a modern take on your “bubbe’s” Jewish cooking down to NOLA.
• InVision Biomedical, a firm that takes existing innovative procedures and implements novel medical devices, expanding patient safety and hospital cost efficiency.
• Million Dollar Scholar, an education technology and services venture that addresses higher education affordability by providing students with an online platform to learn how to become successful in the scholarship application process
• Threadix, an event management and data analytics company utilizing the latest technological innovations in near field communication to allow advertisers and event organizers new methods to expand branding opportunities.
• Tympanogen, a firm commercializing a gel patch developed at Tulane University, called Perf-Fix™, for non-surgical repair of chronic tympanic membrane perforations.
• US Fresh Cane, a sugar cane drink company that provides consumers an alternate and natural drink that can improve their health and fitness levels.
Semi-finalists receive $1,000 each and get to pitch, receive mentoring and network with a variety of lean startup experts on Tuesday, March 25, during New Orleans Entrepreneur Week, the sixth annual premier showcase event for the local entrepreneurial ecosystem. Ultimately, three finalists will present their business models at Tulane University on Friday, April 11, 2014.
Tulane is now taking after the International Business Model Competition, a contest that wants ventures to prove customer validation and adapt to the process of creating a business model. Instead of intensive library research, student entrepreneurs will get out in the field and prove their assumptions.
TEA President Adrian Mendez believes the competition provides a deeper learning opportunity and a more guided process for those interested in launching and running a company. “Essentially what we’re doing is creating an evolution of what has been established at Tulane, allowing for students to quickly prototype and execute ideas instead of just participating in a one time pitch.”
“The competition has always been a flagship event that supports local–now regional– entrepreneurs and programs,” Mendez says. “As the program grows, we hope to continue to motivate and inspire students to be on the forefront of entrepreneurial activity with the resources we provide.”
Follow the Tulane Business Model Competition on Facebook at facebook.com/tulanebusinessmodelcompetition and on Twitter at twitter.com/tulanebmc.
Tuesday, January 21st, 2014
After hosting one of the region’s premiere college business plan competitions for 14 years, the Tulane Entrepreneurs Association (TEA) has completely redesigned the contest to better reward the practical aspects of what make startups successful – the ability to rapidly adapt to customers’ needs.
The 2014 Tulane Business Model Competition will award more than $35,000 in prizes to new business ventures demonstrating a customer-validated business model.
Instead of rewarding the theoretical, the new contest wants ventures to show they’ve worked with potential customers to vet their services, adapted to those needs and shown the ability to quickly change course if the market disproves their assumptions. The new Tulane Business Model Competition offers a $25,000 grand prize and a $10,000 award for runner-up.
“In this contest, sleek presentations are not going to cut it,” said Ralph Maurer, executive director of the Levy-Rosenblum Institute for Entrepreneurship at Tulane University’s A.B. Freeman School of Business. “Participants won’t be rewarded for overly ambitious sales projections, drawing fancy graphs or crafting the perfect pitch to venture capitalists.”
Instead the contest rewards teams for breaking down their idea into a key business model hypotheses; testing their assumptions with customers; applying Customer Development/Lean Startup principles to make sure they nail the solution; and learning to pivot until they have a customer-validated business model.
The contest is open to any team led by at least two or more students enrolled in a college or university. To enter, teams must submit a video presentation – normally a voice annotated slide deck no longer than 10 minutes – online by 11:59, Feb 14. More details on submission criteria are available at: http://tulane2014.istart.org/ .
“Entering the first round of the competition doesn’t require a significant time investment, and it’s a worthwhile exercise for anyone working on a startup,” Maurer said.
TEA will select eight semi-finalists who will win $1,000 each and get to pitch, receive mentoring and network with a variety of lean startup experts on Tuesday, March 25, in New Orleans. Ultimately, three finalists will present their business models at Tulane University on Friday, April 11, 2014.
- Keith Brannon
Tuesday, January 14th, 2014
As director of the Freeman School’s Burkenroad Reports program, Peter Ricchiuti has spent more than 20 years highlighting the small, profitable companies that often fly under the radar of Wall Street. Now, Ricchiuti has collected some of the lessons he’s learned over the years in a new book.
Stocks Under Rocks shares some of the lessons of the Freeman School’s Burkenroad Reports program.
Stocks Under Rocks: How to Uncover Overlooked, Profitable Market Opportunities (FT Press), co-written with New Orleans Advocate features editor Annette Sisco, is a funny, informative guide to investing based on Riccchiuti’s experiences running the acclaimed student equities research program.
“It’s all the stories I tell in class and all the stories we get from visiting with the companies, but integrated into the funny stories is what we found that makes those companies a smart investment,” says Ricchiuti, a professor of practice in finance. “Every company represents a few anecdotes and a few funny stories but also one investment lesson learned.”
For example, don’t limit your investments to hip, sexy stocks. Ricchiuti says hopelessly unfashionable companies like pawn shops and convenience stores may not win you many points at cocktail parties, but they often generate higher returns than the latest media darling tech company.
“It’s the least attractive stuff,” Ricchiuti laughs, “but when you look at the financials, they all have great stories.”
Investors willing to look beyond the surface would learn that Cash America, for example, the pawn shop company, actually derives much of its revenue from a lucrative online loan business, while Susser Holdings, operator of Stripes convenience stores, attracts customers with a chain of high-quality in-store Mexican restaurants.
Ricchiuti says the biggest lesson of all when it comes to regional small-cap stocks is that individual investors really can gain an advantage over Wall Street.
“The conventional wisdom, particularly in academia, is that every stock is already efficiently priced, but when you get down low enough and small enough, there’s often times no other coverage,” Ricchiuti says. “If you’re willing to do the research, you really can know more than anyone else, and for an investor, that’s a great place to be.”
Peter Ricchiuti will be reading from and signing Stocks Under Rocks at the uptown location of Maple Street Book Shop on Thursday, Feb. 6, at 6 p.m.


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Event tech company Splash to open EMEA headquarters in Amsterdam
US firm Splash will launch its EMEA operations with a new office in Amsterdam, helping it to better serve regional and multinational companies using its event management platform.
Splash lands in Amsterdam
US event marketing company Splash is launching its EMEA operations with a regional headquarters in Amsterdam.
Founded in 2012 and headquartered in New York, the firm provides an online tool for brands to develop in-person, virtual and hybrid event programmes.
Its growing global customer base means it will expand operations to the EMEA market, and base its new team in Amsterdam, where it can serve customers including Amsterdam-based companies such as Adyen, Mollie and Salesforce. A new data centre in Frankfurt, Germany, will enable the company to meet GDPR requirements.
Splash CEO Eric Holmen said the international expansion is a “milestone moment” for the company. A press announcement said Splash selected Amsterdam as its European headquarters due to its central location and proximity to countries where the majority of the company’s regional customers are based.
Greg Higgins, general manager Europe, will oversee the EMEA expansion. He said: “We are invested in the success of our regional and multinational customers located in EMEA. Their ability to rely on a partner who understands and can meet their different needs is critical to that success, especially when it comes to data privacy and global regulation compliance.”
Top connectivity and digital infrastructure
The Amsterdam Area has one of the best digital infrastructures in Europe, as well as fast and reliable connections to the rest of the continent, making it an easy and effective location for growing tech companies. It also boasts a well-educated talent pool in a country where more than 90% of the population speaks English.


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Muslim model Halima Aden quits runway after being ’forced’ to compromise her religious practices
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Top Muslim model Halima Aden quit the runway after she was allegedly forced to compromise on her religious practices by wearing immodest clothing.
The 23-year-old, who has worked with fashion icons like Rihanna and Kanye West, rose to fame at the age of 19 when she hailed as the first supermodel to wear a hijab.
Aden took to Twitter reels to announce that she’s leaving the model industry because of for its lack of diversity.
The Queen has finally won 😂👑🙌🏾 as tf she should because she’s the reason for all my success and happiness ♥✊🏿🥺 my new goal in life is to just make her proud! My best friend! My whole heart ❤ https://t.co/1Jh6rSxIo7— Halima Aden (@Kinglimaa) November 25, 2020
She also recalled the time she was working on a shoot for American Eagle Outfitters and agreed to wear a pair of jeans rather than her traditional headscarf.
Reminiscing about that incident, she said: “'But… this isn't even my style?? Never was. Why did I allow them to put jeans on my head when at the time I had only ever worn skirts and long dresses?”
She added: “I went back to my hotel room & just sobbed after this shoot because deep down I knew this wasn't it. But was too scared to speak up. The truth is I was very UNCOMFORTABLE. This just ain't me.”
Taking her mother’s advice from two years ago, Aden has left the modelling industry and admits that fashion wasn't for her.
“Fashion was NEVER for me. I am for the PEOPLE! I am for my IMAAN! I have WOKEN UP!!!.” she wrote on Twitter.
Fashion was NEVER for me. I am for the PEOPLE! I am for my IMAAN! I have WOKEN UP!!! https://t.co/kuzoZLfgZi— Halima Aden (@Kinglimaa) November 25, 2020
She said she made 'mistakes' when representing the traditional head veil for Muslim women. However, the pandemic allowed her to spend time with her family and reflect on her career, which is why she’s dropping modelling.
Aden had a contract with MG Models Worldwide.


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Amazon Prime Video has announced that it has exclusive streaming rights for India to Bong Joon Ho’s multiple Oscar-winning film Parasite.
The dark comedy drama, which made history for a foreign-language title when it won four Oscars, including best picture, will stream exclusively on Amazon Prime Video India from March 27. Amazon said that “in a first-of-its-kind effort”, the South Korean film will be available in a Hindi dubbed version, as well as with English subtitles.
Ashwani Sharma’s Impact Films released Parasite theatrically in India on January 31 across 76 screens. Impact Films has also released festival titles such as Berlin Syndrome, A Fantastic Woman and Capernaum in India.